4 months old and just ducky!

Oh my GOD, time has FLOWN!! Today was Davey's 4 month birthday, and he marked the occasion by waking up with a cold. Aw. No fever, really, just some congestion and irritability. Still, he was mostly very sweet today. Unfortunately, since he was obviously a little sick, he and I couldn't go to see the free concert by Jefferson Starship at Justin Herman Plaza, in San Francisco....

Meanwhile, so much has happened since the last posting to this blog. First, the scary:

Garrie Nicoll, my brother-in-law, was taken to the hospital last Saturday with a case of bacterial meningitis. For a couple of days he was in a drug-induced coma and intubated, while the medical staff of Petaluma Valley Hospital. It was touch-and-go the first night, with worries that he might not make it. However, he pulled through that very frightening period and has steadily gotten better each day. He's by no means out of the woods yet, but as of tonight, he's finally out of the Intensive Care Unit and is in a regular hospital room. If you want updates on his condition, let me know -- Polly's giving me updates once or twice a day and I'm sending out update emails to a growing list of folks.

Okay, now back to the fun stuff, the rest of our Minnesota trip!

Can I just say... BRRRR?! Mark nor I have ever experienced such extremely cold temperatures. On Sunday it was minus 35 degrees (Fahrenheit) when wind-chill was taken in to account. Holy bejeezuz! Each time we went outside, I felt the insides of my nostrils crinkle.

On Friday we visited with Grandma for a couple of hours and then ventured to the Mall of America (a first for Mark and Davey). "Oh, it's got all the stores I'm used to seeing any any old mall," was basically what Mark said. Yep, that's about right. Except it's got EVERY mall store you'd find in ALL malls, plus an amusement park in the center. While there we got some coffee, shared an order of two hush puppies (which weren't as good as Jessica remembered from when she had them when she was 20 years old). Then we ventured back out to the cold and went to a family dinner at cousin Michael's house. This was when Davey got to meet Kaye, Michael, Lauren, Jocelyn, Troy, Danny, Leah and Mara. Quite a lot of new family to fawn over him -- lucky boy! A very nice evening was had there until Davey decided that he'd definitely not had enough naps during the day and all the stimulation was just too much. He melted down and it was time to get back to the hotel and get a good night's sleep.

On Saturday we visited Grandma for a couple hours in the morning and, because we were just tired, we went back to the hotel to rest up for the afternoon. That evening we went to Dan and Kaye's house for another family dinner (of delicious crab legs!) and had yet another great time.

Sunday, we packed up our stuff and headed over for one last visit with Grandma before heading over to Jocelyn and Troy's house. In honor of having guests and the Super Bowl, Troy whipped up chicken corn chowder, guacamole and chips and homemade pizza. Go Troy, go! The boys went to the TV and watched pre-game shows and the game, while the girls hung out in the (warmer) living room and played with the baby, baby toys, the children and just talked and hung out. What a nice day! Except for the fact that it was minus 35 degrees outside, of course.

We headed to the airport a little before the halftime break of the Super Bowl and, by the time we got through Security at the airport, the game was a little ways in to the 3rd quarter. I'm sorry we missed the Prince performance at halftime, but I'll live.

Meanwhile, Davey showed that he wasn't as thrilled about this flight as he was for his first trip. Perhaps he could sense that we weren't getting to sit in first class this time around, like we did on his first flight. Sadly, the plane Sun Country was using for our flight home was not configured for first class. They didn't put anyone in between our seats, so at least we had that going for us, but it still wasn't as comfortable and roomy as first class. So in honor of not getting first class seats, Davey screamed and cried inconsolably for nearly two hours, as we waited to board the plane. I could just feel the tension of the other waiting passengers, and then their tentative relief when he finally quieted and fell asleep on my shoulder, shortly before boarding. Unfortunately, he awoke just as we pushed back from the gate and started fussing. I tried my best to get him quiet and comfortable, by playing, singing and dancing with him. But there was just so much I could do... yep, he just had to cry. The saving grace was that there was a louder, more obnoxious crying child of 3 years old or so in the row behind us. Perhaps she was more annoying to the other passengers than Davey was. At least Davey eventually fell asleep and stayed asleep for the remainder of the flight. As we began our descent, he started moving around and wanting to be fed. I nursed him until we had nearly landed, but he was mostly eating in his sleep. Only after we were inside the terminal did he wake, with a start, and cry for a second before he blinked, looked at our faces and then calmed down. Funny boy!

Now he's 4 months old and has his first cold. It's minor, without a fever, so it's mostly an annoyance (for him and for us). Tomorrow is his 4 month well-baby visit, so we'll get to talk with the doctor about the cold in addition to whatever else happens in a 4 month old well-baby visit. Oh boy!

Anyway, now, with his first trip behind us, I think I'm ready for more travels with Davey. Next comes Hawaii in May/June. Let the world travels begin!